Human Stem Cell Use: Adult or Tissue Stem Cell
Mechanisms of Hematopoietic stem cell Specification and Self-Renewal
During an individual’s lifetime, blood-forming cells in the bone marrow called hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) supply all the red and white blood cells needed to sustain life. These blood stem cells are unique because they can make an identical copy of themselves (self-renew). Disorders of the blood system can be terminal, but such diseases may […]
Molecular mechanisms involved in adult neural stem cell maintenance
The adult brain contains a pool of stem cells, termed adult neural stem cells, that could be used for regenerative purposes in diseases that affect the nervous system. The goal of this proposal is to understand the mechanisms that promote the maintenance of adult neural stem cells as an organism ages. Understanding the factors that […]
A Novel Engineered Niche to Explore the Vasculogenic Potential of Embryonic Stem Cells
Cardiovascular diseases account for an estimated $330 billion in health care costs each year, afflict 61.8 million Americans, and will account for more than 1.5 million deaths in the U.S. this year alone. A number of these diseases are characterized by either insufficient blood vessel growth or damage to the existing vessels, resulting in inadequate […]
Oral and Craniofacial Reconstruction Using Mesenchymal Stem Cells
The overall goal of this proposal is to explore a new stem cell-based treatment for major defects in the orofacial regions resulted from burns, physical injuries, genetic diseases, cancers, infectious diseases, and recently, bisphosphonate-associated osteonecrosis of the jaw (BONJ), using the patient’s own stem cells obtained from the oral cavity known as orofacial mesenchymal stem […]
Developmental Candidates for Cell-Based Therapies for Parkinson’s Disease (PD)
Parkinson’s Disease (PD) is a devastating disorder, stealing vitality from vibrant, productive adults & draining our health care dollars. It is also an excellent model for studying other neurodegenerative conditions. We have discovered that human neural stem cells (hNSCs) may exert a significant beneficial impact in the most authentic, representative, & predictive animal model of […]
Enhancing healing via Wnt-protein mediated activation of endogenous stem cells
All adult tissues contain stem cells. Some tissues, like bone marrow and skin, harbor more adult stem cells; other tissues, like muscle, have fewer. When a tissue or organ is injured these stem cells possess a remarkable ability to divide and multiply. In the end, the ability of a tissue to repair itself seems to […]
Development of a Stem Cell-based Transplantation Strategy for Treating Age-related Macular Degeneration
Age related macular degeneration (AMD) is a blinding disease of the elderly affecting nearly one in three individuals over the age of 75. Central vision is lost in AMD, severely impairing the ability to read, watch television, or drive. The epicenter of AMD is the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE), a single layer of cells in […]
Neural Stem Cells as a Developmental Candidate to Treat Alzheimer Disease
Alzheimer disease (AD), the most common cause of dementia among the elderly and the third leading cause of death, presently afflicts over 5 million people in the USA, including over 500,000 in California. Age is the major risk factor, with 5% of the population over age 65 affected, with the incidence doubling every 5 years […]
Sustained siRNA production from human MSC to treat Huntingtons Disease and other neurodegenerative disorders
One in every ten thousand people in the USA have Huntington’s Disease, and it impacts many more. Multiple generations within a family can inherit the disease, resulting in escalating health care costs and draining family resources. This highly devastating and fatal disease touches all races and socioeconomic levels, and there are currently no cures. Screening […]
Role of Innate Immunity in hematopoeitic stem cell-mediated allograft tolerance
The research proposed in this project has very high potential to identify new medications to boost the natural ability of stem cells to prevent rejection of transplanted organs. This is a very important goal, because patients that receive a life-saving transplanted organ must take toxic medications that increase their risk for cancer and serious infections. […]